Baker, who replaces the Barbara the banker character who starred in the bank’s domestic advertising, plays his character in The Mentalist, Patrick Jane. The ads carry the two-year old slogan ‘We live in your world’.

The ads aim to position ANZ as insightful, sophisticated and worldly, but with a strong connection to Australia, according to ANZ.

A different execution of the campaign will run in Hong Kong, Singapore and Taiwan as well as Australia and New Zealand.

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Although the Patrick Jane character is not known in Asia, the creative concept does not rely on familiarity with The Mentalist to work, ANZ’s group general manager, brand, Louise Eyres told Mumbrella.

“His character is modern and contemporary, and is a strong fit with ANZ’s brand values,” she said.

Eyres pointed out that The Mentalist is soon to launch across Asia, so the Patrick Jane character would soon build awareness.

I like it. It takes the virtually impossible ‘we live in our world’ thought and makes it work. And you can see how easy it’ll be for them to roll it out across all the bank’s products and services. And won’t the Asian market just love Simon Baker.

I know what they’re trying to do with the direct, second person address. But they don’t really land it. No-one really thinks all that about their bank. In fact they don’t think half of it. That’s just what a bank wished their customers thought about them, right ANZ?

And Simon spends 3/4 of the ad looking everywhere but me, which doesn’t help the whole second person approach.

Hey, old guy who works at Whybin TBWA, can you explain to me how it makes ‘we live in your world’ work? After a minute of gabbling, I can’t remember any single thing the handsome TV star told me. And how will it be easy to roll out across products and services? Presumably Simon won’t be dirtying his hands with credit card offers. So what’s left? Fingerprints?

Twitter was abuzz last night with confused people wondering why Aussie Simon Baker was speaking to Australians in an American accent. ANZ both overestimated the popularity of the Mentalist and his character and failed to see that people identify him as SImon Baker not his character. It’s an #epicfail.

I see that Samsung have dumped their tagline ‘Turn on Tomorrow’ very quickly and Simon’s tvc where he goes from space ship to loungeroom and just happens to touch just about every product Samsung make. There was no longevity in that and even less in the ANZ effort where he is talking to nobody in particular. Simon is becomong the chesse-iest presenter ever!

Mentalist didn’t even crack 1million last night.
Badly directed? Doesn’t feel like the mentalist execpt its Simon Baker wearing a similar suit.
and remember the smaller bank that signed Seinfeld of years ago….
maybe Comm bank should sign up the masterchef judges.

The other people walking down the street next to him don’t appear to worry that he is talking to himself. Nothing against paranoid schizophrenics but wouldn’t you move at least a couple of steps to the side if the guy next to you started yabbering on to himself. About a bank no doubt.

it’s a great idea with prety average execution – but this fact alone doesn’t excuse many of the silly comments above

Tim – believe me, the target audience has no idea what you mean by ‘direct, second person address’. The 800,000 or so that watch the show just recognise and like the character and by association, will warm to the brand. And i’d be surprised if any of them track his eye movements.

Michael – the ‘we live in your world’ line is brought to life by Baker’s TV character stepping out of his fictional world into ours. The ‘we’ is meant to be Baker and ANZ. It’s not rocket surgery, buddy.

#fail – because some Tweets express confusion the entire target audience is confused, is it? dear me. Perhaps a more rigorous evaluation methodology could be employed, don’t you think? and if people are at least talking about the campaign in Twitter isn’t this a social media success, to a degree?

Anonymous – Simon Baker is what we call ‘in character’ hence speaks with the same accent as his Mentalist alter ego

I don’t watch the show nor have i a vested interest in the success or failure of this campaign, yet i despair at the pure bitchiness and/or idiocy at many of these comments.

Would have been a marvellous touch if the bank had managed to make its GoMoney app, on which it all hinges, work in time. It has been unavailable for many weeks because of technical problems – and still apparently can’t be downloaded, even after the ad aired widely. So, no, ANZ does not live in my world.

For those who believe in such things (I’ve never watched it) then his facial language is also screaming liar (avoiding direct eye contact and wandering viewpoint)

This is the kind of ad you should see on holiday overseas and perhaps marvel at how ANZ nuances their brand messaging around the region. Instead, you’ll see it here and be utterly boggled as to what they were thinking.

But if I haven’t watched the show, and don’t know who the character is, how will I be aware that he has stepped out of his world into mine? It just looks like a guy talking at the camera, not a character.

You seem to be assuming that 800,000 people who watch the show will explain it to the rest of Australia. But you’ve also probably read the strategy. That always helps.

I don’t think it’s a hit at all. We saw it last night and, like others obviously, didn’t realise that Mr Baker was supposed to be in character; we were just offended that he was talking in an American accent. We therefore immediately disengaged from the pitch and the brand and thought it was an epic fail.

The comments aren’t silly, Sven, they’re real. The fact that you need six paras to address a range if individual issues raised in this quite short comments stream really seems to me to display how far off the mark this campaign is.

Slick it might be…but I immediately thought it was a station ad for Mentalist…works a treat for 9 network as show recall ….not sure if I was Ten or 7 I would be thrilled running the ad. But then NAB & their divorce from other banks, Westpac and Heritage, Ing & the Orange Monkey…what the f*** would I know!! As long as the Marketing Director is happy and feels they have made their mark…that’s all that counts. Because they know all!!

Sven, it’s pretty simple: The problem with Baker doing an American accent as if he were in character is that everything about it runs DIRECTLY COUNTER to the ad’s intended message. Baker’s character doesn’t live in our world – he’s fictional! If Baker had done the ad in an Aussie accent it would have been a good effect: “here he is as you’re used to seeing him on television, but look: he’s part of your world”. There would be ownership of Baker and therefore of ANZ – a territorial pride for the domestic viewer, which is right on message – where instead there’s alienation and the mark of the foreigner. Might play just as well or better in the region; plays very badly domestically.

I like Simon Baker. And the Mentalist. But this ad left me absolutely cold and with no real idea how or why they thought using him would be relevant. ANZ are about to stand out for all the wrong reasons. Glad they’re not one of my banks.

It’s funny how in the the narrative it says that people are looking for a bank that’s ‘more real’ when it uses an Australian actor talking to Australians about their personal financial matters…. using an American accent… how much more fake can you get..?
Was considering leaving ANZ anyway… this is just more support for my decision.

Please spare me the conceit of your pseudo-intellectualism as it’s utter nonsense. What you under-employed but self-important creatives or creative wannabes are missing is the fact that THE TARGET AUDIENCE IS NOT YOU. They are the 800,000 people who regularly watch the Mentalist and the millions more (like me) who don’t watch it but know the character from all the promos. The target audience doesn’t even think about let alone analyse advertising. It’s a 3000 message a day wall of noise. They either recognise Baker and stop and listen for a few seconds, or they don’t recognise him and/or don’t care and the next ad rolls. This is what happens in ‘their world’ – a world (ie their mind) that just happens to include fictional and non-fictional characters that don’t physically inhabit the same postcode. Some of you really should spend less time bitching about others’ ads and more time re-training yourself for your next occupation.

Wow. An ad that’s worse (measurably) than the Westpac ‘Know-How’ ad. That’s quite an achievement – who would have thought a polished actor could come off worse than a ‘real’ Westpac staff member (how annoying is that woman?!)

Absolutely woeful…sorry Simon – you used to be on E-Street, now you’re trying to pretend you’re from America?! Oh hang-on, you’re in character….as a wanker

Even if I am the Mentalist’s number one fan, I understand that he lives in a drama-driven, fictional, fantasy world. I suspend disbelief when I watch him. Why shouldn’t I think this message comes from the same place, too?

Unless this campaign gets very clever, very quickly, the “We live in your world” suggestion is going to look very, very forced coming from a bland fictional character, notwithstanding all the message paradox noted above.

Fictional characters in advertising have a variable history, finding most success when their character is used stereotypically to highlight the main message. Here he acts as some improbable, smug advocate. That may be a refelction of reality, but likely not one ANZ wants.

Confusing ad. My Mum saw it and asked ‘Isn’t that Simon Baker, the Aussie? Why is he talking with an American accent?’

This would be typical for many across Australia.

Regardless of the spin you put to make it seem like a good idea, most will either just be confused or not get it. For people who don’t know Simon Baker or his show, it will be a middling ad with poor use of the 2nd person.

AdGrunt
Potential viewership is not the same as target audience.
I’m sorry but the rest of your post isn’t coherent. For example, if you are the Mentalist’s number one fan, how could he be a bland fictional character to you?

Wow Sven, you are a super intellectual know all. Wish I could be like you. Everyone and I mean every person (around 20 or so friends/ work colleagues) that I have spoken to about this commercial are confused about it. This is an epic fail from ANZ . Oh and we all have degrees and post graduate education and are employed. You my friend are a TROLL

Adgrunt that’s a bit weak. You not only avoided my question by asking a question, your question was a question that i’d answered in my previous post.
Yes, of course it’s a brand ad. But brand ads aren’t just sprayed out into the sonic ether – they are created with a view to a specific target audience. You continue to confuse potential viewership with target audience.

Dear Mum
Hey – i’m the son you raised, aren’t you responsible for the way i turned out?
What’s that? You’re not really my mum? You’re a sockpuppet? or rather, a muppet? yes, that is quite clear from your post.

Sven, seriously. You post a quite lot on Mumbrella and have a very high opinion of your own opinion but really, you have no idea. The ad doesn’t work. No matter how you look at it, it’s a celebrity endorsement ad. Use celebs and the message has to tie in beautifully with the celeb you choose for the ad to work. See Nike’s Rewrite the Future. This one didn’t. It left too many confused. It’s not an easy get so the ad fails. Which is a pity we’re all confused about Baker and his accent because what he’s actually saying in the first ad is some pretty good copywriting.

This ad is a perfect example of undisciplined creatives convincing themselves & an eager but foolish client that the Emperor is wearing beautiful clothes.
1/ Sven, it just fails to connect with we, the POTENTIAL audience & possible ANZ customer, why the heck is it only supposed to work for the TARGET audience? Is that not simply preaching to the converted? What a waste of money.
2/ I had to assume that Baker was playing his Mentalist role; it was the only explanation for his accent; my wife had no idea as she has never seen the show.
So during the commercial, we completely missed the information being conveyed as we tried to ‘get our bearings’. As a result of being in character, his failure to look me in the eye is remarkably off putting & cold.
3/ I’m sure the ANZ will claim to be ‘delighted’ with all the publicity, but will
this really translate into new customers?
I mean, that IS the point of advertising isn’t it?

I understood that Simon was playing the character of Patrick Jane in the ad – what I didn’t understand was WHY? He’s an Aussie. If ANZ wanted Australian audiences to connect with him, why on Earth didn’t they just let him play himself, with his natural Aussie accent?

It’s a very strange ad, and it certainly doesn’t make me want to bank with ANZ.

Hi Sven,
Not a marketing boffin. I’ve seen The Mentalist but don’t watch it regularly & I find it strange ANZ went this route. The show is not a hit & all it got me thinking was did he need clearance from CBS as surely they own the character? It’s such an impersonal character anyway – he floats separate to other people.

This ad is terrible, there is no other justification or message take out. It has completely missed the mark – who is responsible ANZ marketing?? Is producing crap on your KPI’s? if so congrats! The first day I saw this ad I just come from a meeting were we had to to seriously critic our own ad before broadcasting. I instantly thought “it could be worse if i worked at ANZ”. If you sit back and look at the recent bank work Nab credit card honesty wins hands down, followed by every other ad than the ANZ or Westpac efforts.

The fact that such a shockingly awful ad made it through to broadcast is just evidence of how incredibly out of touch the agency and client are. Whoever approved this should be fired immediately…You dont get paid your big bucks to damage your employers brand..

People talking on twitter about how the ad is an epic fail and shows how out of touch the bank is, is not a success. Sven is a troll or one of the idiots involved in this disaster. Bad bad bad bad bad ad.

what a load of crap, as someone said, shooting from America, the home of corrupt banking looks pretty bad to me. In an American accent, looks even worse to australians. Couldn’t they get him to do 2 versions of the ad, with Oz and US accents?

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